This weekend I got the chance to play with the new Sony NEX FS700. I was the last in line to test a preproduction model on its European tour. As soon as I heard that I will get the camera to Slovenia I organized a few shoots to stress test the camera and check the new beast.

I shot two short movies and a few interesting clips during the short period of time I had the camera and will have them up on my blog later this week, because I have to wait for the official Sony video (which I am also a part of) to come out first.

The new camera is FS100′s bigger brother. Its design and feel is similar, with some major improvements. Most noticeable are build in ND filters which add to the size of the body but help with the ease of use. No more fumbling with the screw on variable NDs. The camera is also more solidly build and has a rugged handle. It has a HD-SDI for proper monitoring and off board recording. The most important feature of the camera is its ability to shoot at high speeds at up to 240 fps in 1080p resolution. This camera is a true world camera as it is 50Hz/60Hz switchable. Maximum speed when shooting at 50Hz is 200 fps, and 240fps at 60Hz. When triggered the camera records around 10 seconds of footage at desired format (24fps, 25fps,…). The camera can also do higher speeds at reduced resolution, so I didn’t bother to check this option. 10 seconds of footage at 200fps translates to stunning 75 second of world coming to a still.

Of course I wanted to shoot slow motions as much as I could so I decided to record fast moving motocross rider on the first day. The off road terrain near Ljubljana’s airport was tough. There was no rain for quite some time and the track was hard and dry. The air was filled with dust and as soon as I saw that it was settling on the camera I got a bit scared. I didn’t want to ruin the camera in the first few hours. But the camera performed flawlessly and the hard environment didn’t prevent me from capturing great images. I used Nikon lenses and they turned out splendid.

The next shoot started nicely for the camera. Peaceful rural scenery on Kras. Pine trees, sun and breeze in the air. I had a couple of friends helping me with the acting and we shoot a romantic drama with a twist. I used SLR Magic HyperPrime CINE T0.95 for the romantic parts of the movie. The lens turned out to be a perfect fit for the camera. Images were stunning. I also used Half Inch Rails rig for attaching accessories like SmallHD DP4 monitor and Genus follow focus. This combination really helped me nailing the focus.

But of course I couldn’t help my self to stress test the camera even more. I attached it to the car using a car rig made out of various Manfrotto and Avenger parts. This time the model was beautiful Range Rover Evoque, driven by my friend Polona. For this I used a kit lens 18-200 as it is light and it has an optical stabilizer. The shots turned out great even though the streets can be really bumpy in these parts of the world.

All in all I’m really satisfied with the camera and I’m glad Sony decided to let me play with it.

@scott
I’ve been only shooting real life scenes. No technical testing. I didn’t notice any problems with the highlights. Tough I had a Frank Glencairn’s special picture profile dialed in for which I’m really thankful to him.

@James
Didn’t try to sync with external sound recorders, so I wouldn’t know. Video samples will follow later this week, after Sony releases their official video.

Thanks for watching.

scott

Posted April 3, 2012 at 10:18 PM

Thanks Peter, really excited about this camera!

I think one of the chief concerns with this camera is the highlight handling based on peoples experience with the FS100. I do need to thank the people over at RED for bringing us these new cameras, amazing times for our creative needs and bank accounts.